Author: LDS SMILE

*Disclaimer: These are all of the rumors that we have been hearing about concerning the upcoming General Conference this weekend. But they are precisely that, rumors. Most (and I suspect all) will not come to fruition. If there are going to be large changes that are announced this weekend, I suspect that they will be none of the rumors that we have listed below.* 1. Mission lengths will become optional for younger missionaries as they are for senior couples. Anywhere from 6 months to 2 years. 2. Change to endowment to make it shorter. (Photo credit: Scott Jarvie) 3....

High school is a volatile time, but Tim Timmerman thinks he has it all figured out. Just like many cinematic high students of the 80’s and 90’s, Tim has big dreams. He dreams of being great, while doing as little as possible and coasting by on his charisma. This film is reminiscent of many 90’s films, most notably Ferris Bueller, but also has nods to other 80’s and 90’s movies like Teen Wolf and Say Anything. Tim Timmerman is the semi-autobiographical story of director Cameron Sawyer, set in 1994, and was filmed and based in Utah. It begins just as many high school movies do, with a prank on a rival school. This scene has important implications throughout the movie and shows Tim that even seemingly frivolous decisions can have consequences later in life. He decides to run for class president so he can pad his resume and get into Yale. While he has the charisma of a politician, he doesn’t have the grades. At first, Tim reminded me a lot of Ferris Bueller. He crossed into all high school demographics, and everyone was taken with his magnetic personality, even the teachers. But when after my initial impression, Tim was vulnerable just like the rest of us, and there was a relatability. He wasn’t impenetrable like Ferris Bueller, and there was a part of him that was more...

This story comes to us courtesy of LDS Living. The following was written by Audy Leavitt, who starred with her husband Tyson on the TLC reality TV show Playhouse Masters. Read more from Audy at alwaysaudy.com. When Tyson started a custom, luxury playhouse business just over a year ago, I was very supportive of his dream. That backing halted quickly when we were questioned by a casting director, Andy at TLC, about whether or not we might be willing to star in a family-based reality show about the business. Apparently, my participation was part of the deal. No. Just no. No way. I didn’t have to think about it. I had no desire to put myself or my family before the world audience to be critiqued, judged, or worse. I had so many reasons that I didn’t even feel the need to explain them. I’m private. I don’t have that personality. That’s not me. I’m not good enough. And plus, as soon as TLC saw who I really was, they wouldn’t want me anyway, so what was the point in trying? There was one big problem. What is to be done when your husband’s dream-come-true and your worst nightmare collide into one single offer? My solution was to pray—to ask God to help him see what a terrible idea this was, that it would be hard on our family and...

Just like in school, your positioning in church is everything. The families in the front may be the ones that have a hard time hearing, or want to get their kids to pay attention more. A side pews are for young couples or smaller families. And the back pews for those that make it to church on “Mormon Standard Time” or parents with small kids that need the “quick exit”. I’ve always liked the back pews because it gives me a chance to observe others, which is one of my favorite pastimes. Because I like the back pew, I thought I would start telling you some fun and funny observations I’ve had from that view. This week, I’d like to share some things I saw as a substitute primary “seat warmer”. Some observations from the primary this week: When the Primary President was doing her lesson, she told the children that Saul was rendered speechless. One of the primary kids asked, “What’s speechless?” When the Primary Chorister said, “What is the Holy Ghost?” one of the kids answered, “The Holy Ghost is the guy that bit the head off of the snake.” The Primary President asked the kids what would be the right thing to do if you were bored in Family Home Evening. One little girl said, “I would ask if I could go find something to snuggle.”...

Groundhog’s day is such an overlooked holiday. For some, it is a day that a Groundhog peaks his head out of the ground, and predicts whether we are stuck with 6 more weeks of winter. Other people might think of Groundhog’s Day as the the hit movie with Bill Murray that make Groundhog’s Day a symbol of repeating a day over and over again. In reality, Groundhog’s day can be a little bit of both to us. Groundhog’s Day can be a day where we evaluate how our lives are going. Have we shaken off the heavy snow (or burden’s) of our lives? Have we done a little spring cleaning to our souls? Are we looking forward with hope and faith to our next 6 weeks or are we dwelling in the dread of the winter? Springtime is a time for regrowth and renewal. So what can we do to make sure that we are regrowing and renewing our lives? I would suggest we do a little bit of what Bill Murray did in Groundhog’s Day. We should repeat over and over again the things that make us better, and shed the things that are weighing us down. What have the prophets told us to do on a daily basis over and over again? They tell us to read the scriptures, pray, go to church, and do our Home...